“Summer’s Five Things” is a daily column for NASCAR fans to catch up on the most recent, relevant, and need-to-know news and information in the sport! While mostly focused on NASCAR, this column may also feature other interesting and exciting moments from the world of motorsports. Enjoy!
- Noah Gragson collides into Todd Gilliland, costs both of them the victory
Canadian Tire Motorsports Park is known for its last-lap chaos and tendency for aggressive driving. But with two teammates racing one another for the victory as the laps wound down in the Camping World Truck Series race on Sunday afternoon, there was a question as to whether or not the same aggression level would apply.
It did.
Noah Gragson was right behind his Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate Todd Gilliland on the final lap. As the entered the last turn of the last lap, Gilliland left an oh-so-slim lane open on the bottom lane, and Gragson dive bombed for it.
Gragson went into the corner way too hot and ran into the right rear of Gilliland’s truck, causing both of them to spin out and allowing Justin Haley to squeeze through for his second career Truck Series victory.
Gilliland, as expected, was extremely upset saying that he’d “go fight [Gragson] right now” if he could.
While no one actually fought Gragson, Gilliland’s father, David, and crew chief Marcus Richmond did go over and talk to him, both of them very frustrated as well.
And remember, these are all individuals who work for the same organization.
Gragson, for his part, did take responsibility for the incident, and apologized to his teammate, stating “we’re in the Playoffs” and “I’m trying to get a win”.
Owner and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch is on vacation while the Cup Series is off this week, so he has not yet publicly commented on the incident.
Gragson finished ninth while Gilliland finished 11th.
While Gilliland did not make the postseason, Gragson did and currently has a 24-point cushion over seventh-place Ben Rhodes with two races remaining in the Round of 8, thanks in part to his two stage wins on Sunday. The seventh and eighth place drivers will be eliminated after the October 13th race at Talladega Superspeedway.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Unofficial Race Results
- Justin Haley in the right place at the right time
When asked if he anticipated that the top two drivers might wreck each other on the last lap of the race, Justin Haley responded, “I knew going in there (Noah) Gragson was probably gonna do something not the smartest.”
With a tale that harkens back to the story of the tortoise and the hare, the driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet was patient and methodical and it paid off in dividends.
Haley earned his second career Camping World Truck Series race win on Sunday at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park by sneaking through a wreck between Kyle Busch Motorsports teammates Todd Gilliland and Gragson at the front of the field. He became the sixth different driver in as many races to win at the 10-turn road course.
The 19-year-old driver is competing in his first ever NASCAR Playoffs, and is now locked into the Round of 6, regardless of where he finishes in Las Vegas Motor Speedway or Talladega Superspeedway, the cutoff race for the Round of 8.
“This is what we came to do,” said Haley post-race. “This is road course racing and now we are really looking forward to Vegas. Mission accomplished.”
- Timothy Peters serves as fill-in driver, shows he’s still got it
We haven’t seen much of Timothy Peters lately, let alone leading laps at the front of the field.
However, for the first time since Daytona International Speedway in February of 2017, the 37-year-old driver spent a couple of laps up front while serving as a fill-in driver at GMS Racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.
Peters is an established veteran in the Truck Series, having earned 10 victories in 240 starts and finishing in the top 10 in points for all eight of his full-time seasons.
He was about add a ninth full-time season when team Red Horse Racing announced in May of 2017 that they were shutting down effective immediately, leaving Peters nowhere to go in the middle of the season.
Peter has only made five starts in the Truck Series since then, not including the two DNQs he has had in 2018. He has also made one start for Ricky Benton in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega Superspeedway and failed to qualify with the same team at Daytona in July.
So when GMS Racing asked if he could drive the No. 25 Chevrolet at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park to fill in for Spencer Gallagher — who had injured his shoulder the previous Thursday — Peters jumped right on it and was willing to do whatever it took.
It turns out the marathon Friday to get his passport renewed was worth it, as Peters earned his first top-five finish since the May 2017 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
The top-five run was at the very least helped, if not the result of, Kyle Busch Motorsports teammates Noah Gragson and Todd Gilliland crashing into each other on the last lap at the front of the field. It certainly is what allowed his GMS Racing teammate to make it to Victory Lane.
- Jesse Iwuji finishes 25th in Truck Series debut
31-year-old Jesse Iwuji is making his dreams come true.
After running two-full seasons in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, cherry-picking some additional races in that series and its East counterpart, and running a handful of races in the ARCA Racing Series, Iwuji decided it was time to make his national series debut.
Driving for Reaume Brothers Racing on Sunday at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, Iwuji finished 25th in his Camping World Truck Series debut.
Iwuji is an active member of the U.S. Navy Reserves and a graduate of the Naval Academy. He was a free safety for the Navy Midshipmen football team and a Surface Warfare Officer for the Navy from 2010 to 2017.
- Terrible F1 crash reignites halo debate
When the halo cockpit protection design was first introduced to Formula One for this season, it faced stark resistance and criticism. Fans and competitors alike had felt that the traditionally open cockpit needed to offer some additional protection to the drivers, but the halo system was not exactly what they had in mind.
Fast forward to Sunday and a tumultuous crash at the Belgian Grand Prix has left a question as to whether or not the halo is what allowed driver Charles Leclerc to walk away from the incident virtually unscathed after Fernando Alonso literally landed on top of his car (and, in the process, the halo).
Leclerc himself said he was thankful to have the halo system in place, despite being one of its critics.
In an attempt to manage expectations until further review, FIA F1 director Charlie Whiting stated, “I think “I think it would be a little bit speculative (to say a serious injury had been avoided),” but added, “you can see it doesn’t take much imagination to think that the tyre marks could have actually been on Charles’ head.”
Once the FIA has reviewed all of the data and made their determinations, they will share their findings with the Verizon IndyCar Series. Currently, IndyCar does not offer offer this type of cockpit protection and is considering doing so, most recently in the wake of driver Robert Wickens being severely injured in a crash at Pocono Raceway on August 19th.
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If you would like to receive “Five Things” in your inbox, or just connect with me, you may send me an e-mail at [email protected].
You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram.
Summer’s Five Things: What You Need To Know For August 27, 2018
“Summer’s Five Things” is a daily column for NASCAR fans to catch up on the most recent, relevant, and need-to-know news and information in the sport! While mostly focused on NASCAR, this column may also feature other interesting and exciting moments from the world of motorsports. Enjoy!
Canadian Tire Motorsports Park is known for its last-lap chaos and tendency for aggressive driving. But with two teammates racing one another for the victory as the laps wound down in the Camping World Truck Series race on Sunday afternoon, there was a question as to whether or not the same aggression level would apply.
It did.
Noah Gragson was right behind his Kyle Busch Motorsports teammate Todd Gilliland on the final lap. As the entered the last turn of the last lap, Gilliland left an oh-so-slim lane open on the bottom lane, and Gragson dive bombed for it.
Gragson went into the corner way too hot and ran into the right rear of Gilliland’s truck, causing both of them to spin out and allowing Justin Haley to squeeze through for his second career Truck Series victory.
Gilliland, as expected, was extremely upset saying that he’d “go fight [Gragson] right now” if he could.
While no one actually fought Gragson, Gilliland’s father, David, and crew chief Marcus Richmond did go over and talk to him, both of them very frustrated as well.
And remember, these are all individuals who work for the same organization.
Gragson, for his part, did take responsibility for the incident, and apologized to his teammate, stating “we’re in the Playoffs” and “I’m trying to get a win”.
Owner and Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Busch is on vacation while the Cup Series is off this week, so he has not yet publicly commented on the incident.
Gragson finished ninth while Gilliland finished 11th.
While Gilliland did not make the postseason, Gragson did and currently has a 24-point cushion over seventh-place Ben Rhodes with two races remaining in the Round of 8, thanks in part to his two stage wins on Sunday. The seventh and eighth place drivers will be eliminated after the October 13th race at Talladega Superspeedway.
NASCAR Camping World Truck Series Unofficial Race Results
When asked if he anticipated that the top two drivers might wreck each other on the last lap of the race, Justin Haley responded, “I knew going in there (Noah) Gragson was probably gonna do something not the smartest.”
With a tale that harkens back to the story of the tortoise and the hare, the driver of the No. 24 Chevrolet was patient and methodical and it paid off in dividends.
Haley earned his second career Camping World Truck Series race win on Sunday at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park by sneaking through a wreck between Kyle Busch Motorsports teammates Todd Gilliland and Gragson at the front of the field. He became the sixth different driver in as many races to win at the 10-turn road course.
The 19-year-old driver is competing in his first ever NASCAR Playoffs, and is now locked into the Round of 6, regardless of where he finishes in Las Vegas Motor Speedway or Talladega Superspeedway, the cutoff race for the Round of 8.
“This is what we came to do,” said Haley post-race. “This is road course racing and now we are really looking forward to Vegas. Mission accomplished.”
We haven’t seen much of Timothy Peters lately, let alone leading laps at the front of the field.
However, for the first time since Daytona International Speedway in February of 2017, the 37-year-old driver spent a couple of laps up front while serving as a fill-in driver at GMS Racing in the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series race at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.
Peters is an established veteran in the Truck Series, having earned 10 victories in 240 starts and finishing in the top 10 in points for all eight of his full-time seasons.
He was about add a ninth full-time season when team Red Horse Racing announced in May of 2017 that they were shutting down effective immediately, leaving Peters nowhere to go in the middle of the season.
Peter has only made five starts in the Truck Series since then, not including the two DNQs he has had in 2018. He has also made one start for Ricky Benton in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series at Talladega Superspeedway and failed to qualify with the same team at Daytona in July.
So when GMS Racing asked if he could drive the No. 25 Chevrolet at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park to fill in for Spencer Gallagher — who had injured his shoulder the previous Thursday — Peters jumped right on it and was willing to do whatever it took.
It turns out the marathon Friday to get his passport renewed was worth it, as Peters earned his first top-five finish since the May 2017 race at Charlotte Motor Speedway.
The top-five run was at the very least helped, if not the result of, Kyle Busch Motorsports teammates Noah Gragson and Todd Gilliland crashing into each other on the last lap at the front of the field. It certainly is what allowed his GMS Racing teammate to make it to Victory Lane.
31-year-old Jesse Iwuji is making his dreams come true.
After running two-full seasons in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West, cherry-picking some additional races in that series and its East counterpart, and running a handful of races in the ARCA Racing Series, Iwuji decided it was time to make his national series debut.
Driving for Reaume Brothers Racing on Sunday at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park, Iwuji finished 25th in his Camping World Truck Series debut.
Iwuji is an active member of the U.S. Navy Reserves and a graduate of the Naval Academy. He was a free safety for the Navy Midshipmen football team and a Surface Warfare Officer for the Navy from 2010 to 2017.
When the halo cockpit protection design was first introduced to Formula One for this season, it faced stark resistance and criticism. Fans and competitors alike had felt that the traditionally open cockpit needed to offer some additional protection to the drivers, but the halo system was not exactly what they had in mind.
Fast forward to Sunday and a tumultuous crash at the Belgian Grand Prix has left a question as to whether or not the halo is what allowed driver Charles Leclerc to walk away from the incident virtually unscathed after Fernando Alonso literally landed on top of his car (and, in the process, the halo).
Leclerc himself said he was thankful to have the halo system in place, despite being one of its critics.
In an attempt to manage expectations until further review, FIA F1 director Charlie Whiting stated, “I think “I think it would be a little bit speculative (to say a serious injury had been avoided),” but added, “you can see it doesn’t take much imagination to think that the tyre marks could have actually been on Charles’ head.”
Once the FIA has reviewed all of the data and made their determinations, they will share their findings with the Verizon IndyCar Series. Currently, IndyCar does not offer offer this type of cockpit protection and is considering doing so, most recently in the wake of driver Robert Wickens being severely injured in a crash at Pocono Raceway on August 19th.
~~
If you would like to receive “Five Things” in your inbox, or just connect with me, you may send me an e-mail at [email protected].
You can also follow me on Twitter and Instagram.